Berry Cobbler – A Happy Accident with Cheddar Biscuits!

I have to admit this recipe was an accident, a happy one, but a mistake nonetheless. I was going to post on shortcakes, with balsamic roasted strawberries[2]. I was mixing up the biscuits and got distracted, probably by something I read on Twitter[3]. I added way too much buttermilk to the dough and they were no longer useful as biscuits. How disappointing to have a recipe in mind and then blow it. These weren’t just any biscuits, they were made with cheddar cheese, so they would have a slight sharpness to them, which I find a perfect compliment to the sweet berry filling. What to do, there was no way I was tossing these beauties, but they were too soft to work with in the traditional way. Then it hit me, COBBLER. All the same ingredients, but baked together at one time, even better. I added blueberries, fresh ginger and lemon zest to the strawberries and topped it with my sticky biscuit dough. Thanks to my inability to focus yesterday, I have a new favorite dessert!

In a large bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Cut the butter into 1/2-inch cubes and mix it into the flour using a Dough Blender[6] or your fingers, until it resembles course cornmeal. Stir in the cheddar cheese.

[7]

In a small bowl combine the egg, cream, and buttermilk. Add this to the flour mixture and stir just until there is no more visible flour, but it should still be sticky and lumpy.

[8]

In another large bowl gently toss together the berries, zest, ginger, salt, sugar, and cornstarch.

[9]

Place the berries in a shallow 10-cup baking dish. Scoop the biscuits evenly over the berries.

[10]

They will be about golf ball sized scoops.

[11]

Bake for about 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the biscuits are golden brown, baked through, and the berries have been bubbling for about 20 minutes. It is best to bake this on a cookie sheet in case the berry juices bubble out of the pan.